The military loves acronyms abbreviations and special lingo unique to themselves. The aviation community loves to use them too. But everyone likes to be special and have their own.

Have you ever heard someone talking about something obviously technical but using so many terms, acronyms and such that it almost sounded like a foreign language? Well this isn’t a Rosetta Stone, but it might be a simple primer for those who aren’t fluent in the language of aviation/Navy/military to understand what those of us who are fluent are saying.

The reasons behind why they are used are all the same. Ultimately its just to save time, either in writing or in speech. So now the next time one of your pilot friends talks about how they were IMC going into a particular air field, you’ll understand. Or when you see that Soldier, Sailor, Marine or Airman in the airport, you can actually go up to him/her greet them using their correct title and thank them for their service. I know I appreciate it someone knows my rank and what I do, so will they.

While perhaps not as ‘exciting’ as some other topics, there are enough questions I’ve received about this area that I thought a good glossary might help make things easier for future reference. 🙂

Feel free to comment with your own ‘spoonful of the soup’ that I might have missed, to make a comment or just to ask a question.

Aviation

VOR – VHF Omnidirectional Radio Range: type of radio navigationDME– Distance Measuring Equipment: measures distance between delay of VHF/UHF signals of aircraft and receiver to aid in navigationVHF – Very High Frequency: radio frequency range between 30MHz to 300MHzILS – Instrument Landing System: ground based instrument approach system providing precise guidanceIMC – Instrument Meteorological Conditions: in flight conditions where visual navigation is not possibleIFR – Instrument Flight Rules: regulations for flying aircraft by instrument navigation onlyVFR – Visual Flight Rules: regulations for flying aircraft by navigating using visual reference to the groundFAF – Final Approach Fix: point in space where final approach beginsPFD – Primary Flight Display: a CRT or LCD display with flight informationMFD – Multi-Function Display: a CRT or LCD display with knobs to display various flight related info (typically used in parallel with a PFD)GPS – Global Positioning System: free navigation system made up of 24-32 satellites in orbitRVR – Runway Visual Range: the distance over which a pilot can see the surface of the runway and measured in feet, used for making landing decisions in instrument approaches.VR – Rotation Speed: calculated speed at which an aircraft’s nose will lift off the groundV1 – Take-off Decision Speed: decision speed that once passed, means take-off is imminentVREF – Reference Landing Speed: Landing reference speedUTC – Coordinated Universal Time: standard time based on International Atomic Time; equivalent to GMTGMT – Greenwich Mean Time: used as the Universal Time zone for coordinated time globallyPAX – Passenger: term for manifested passenger(s)

Navy

RON – Rest Over Night: term used in calculating total trip length. Rest Over 1 Night (RO1N)SELRES – Selected Reservist: traditional ‘weekend warrior’; not full timeAWM – Awaiting Maintenance: term used to indicate that a job has not been initiatedAWP – Awaiting Parts: term used to indicate that parts have been orderedCNX – Cancelled: mission or activity that was scheduled has been canceledRMP – Reserve Maintenance Period: 4 hour block of time for a SELRES; used for maintenance related trainingAT – Annual Training: ‘two weeks’; the block of time where a SELFES goes on temporary active duty and does training or suppliments active forcesADT – Active Duty Training: additional training period (temporary active duty) for schools, missions, etcAFTP – Aircrew Flight Training Period: 8 hour block of time for a SELRES; used for flight related training/missionTACAN – Tactical Air Navigation: system used by military aircraft; more accurate version of VOR/DMEAWOL – Absent Without Official Leave: a deserter; unauthorized absence for more than 30 daysUA – Unauthorized Absence: being absent from duty/training without proper authorityAA – Authorized Absence: being absent from duty/training with permissionRESKED – Rescheduled drill: changing the time of a training period for a SELRESCO – Commanding Officer: commissioned officer; ultimately responsible for the condition, training and readiness of a squadron, unit or shipXO – Executive Officer: commissioned officer; assists the CO in maintaining the condition, training and readiness of a squadron, unit or shipNAS – Naval Air Station: aviation base that houses aircraft, equipment and support groups that support the Navy’s air missionsIYAOYAS- If You Ain’t Ordinance You Ain’t Sh#t: the motto for the Aviation Ordinance community (never was an ‘ordie’ but they are some of the hardest working folks around)

Military Enlisted Ranks

Everyone seems to always want to know what the heck the titles are for the enlisted ranks of all the branches, so here’s a simple chart with the abbreviations and symbols so its easy to compare.